Category: Uncategorized

The Texas spiny lizard is the most common lizard in the Austin area. I was walking my dog and on my way back to my apartment I found this critter relaxing right outside my door.  They are grey with white and black blotches. Their common name comes from their spiny scales in which they sometimes get mistaken for horned lizards. The difference between these two are that the spiny lizard is arboreal where their color acts as good camouflage with tree bark. Their diet consists of insects like most lizards.

My iNaturalist post can be found here

While walking to my car each morning I pass a tree with blooming pink flowers. This tree is a Mexican-buckeye (Ungnadia speciosa) and is a native plant to central Texas. The multi-trunked distinct light gray bark make it easy to spot this tree even when the flowers are not in bloom. The bright-pink flowers are frequently visited by bees. They are used in urban landscapes due their pleasant floral aroma and rich color in the spring and summer and bright golden yellow leaves in the fall.

While the seeds look appetizing they are poisonous to humans. The seeds historically have been used as marbles or beads for jewelry making.

My iNaturalist post can be found here.

Over the weekend, I was lucky enough to cross paths with a Texas Tortoise. While these creatures are considered a low concern, they are still listed as a threatened species and protected under Texas state law. Unlike other species of tortoises, the Texas tortoise does not burrow but instead will use dug out areas by other mammals as their home or use their club like feet to move around sand at the base of a tree. This provides them with a little relief from the hot heat of summer. These tortoises are strict herbivores and love to eat prickly pair cacti and their fruit.

While walking through my apartment complex near Walnut Creek, I came across a blooming Trailing Lantana (Lantana montevidensis) near the side of the creek.

According to Austin Native Landscaping, Trailing Lantana is not a native Texas plant, but has adapted well to this area due to it’s drought-resistant behavior. This plant provides food and shelter for bees, butterflies and birds, making it an ideal garden plant. Trailing Lantana is on average 1.5 feet tall, lavender in color, and survives well in both full sun and part shade. For more information about this plant click here.

My iNaturalist post can be found here.

I caught a glimpse of this Lindheimer’s senna (Senna lindheimeriana) at Wild Basin last week, when its velvety leaves and bright yellow flowers caught my eye.

According to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center’s Native Plant Information Network, this plant is named after Ferdinand Lindheimer, who is known as the “Father of Texas Botany” because he was the first person to document several hundred plant species in Central Texas.  In addition to the Lindheimer’s senna, 47 other plant species or sub-species have been named after him.

This native plant could be incorporated into a home garden in the Austin area — it’s drought tolerant, deer resistant, and is known to attract birds and butterflies.  For more information on this plant species, check out the NPIN page here.

My iNaturalist observation can be found here.